The KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Nomusa Dube-Ncube, has welcomed an additional R24 million from the National Disaster Management Centre to be used for drought relief in the province’s long-suffering municipalities.

The money will be paid directly to KZN’s drought stricken municipalities for specific drought relief programmes such as the drilling of boreholes.

The assistance comes after the province’s municipalities received R352 million in wide-ranging drought relief assistance from the Department of Water and Sanitation.

“This additional financial assistance is a good example of well-functioning inter-governmental relations. It is proof that national government has its finger on the pulse when it comes to the needs of our municipalities, where a prolonged drought has created numerous challenges for farmers and communities over the past year.

“Although the money is being paid directly to municipalities, we as Cogta will exercise general oversight over its expenditure to ensure that this drought relief funding is spent for its intended purpose in its entirety and that it makes a difference on the ground where it matters most,” said MEC Dube-Ncube.

KZN Cogta also reiterated its call for municipalities and their residents to conserve water to minimise the impact of water shortages in the province’s numerous catchment areas.

“Unless we all join hands, we will simply not be able to pull through this prolonged drought.

“We have a shared interest in ensuring a steady flow of water for our basic needs and for our farming activities. Unless we limit all non-essential use of water, we will not have enough of this precious commodity to sustain ourselves in the long term,” MEC Dube-Ncube said.